It has been over two years since the crash of Air France flight 447 over the Atlantic Ocean. As the clues to the disaster continue to be put together, preliminary reports implicate the pilots' reactions to faulty airspeed readings as a contributing cause. Have pilots become overly reliant on automation?

Aviation safety agencies are mulling over accident data and are raising the possibility that cockpit automation may be getting ahead of pilot decision making. While some experts point to the influx of younger pilots who were born into a tech-heavy world that requires less direct physical piloting, others cite the need for better training and awareness in order to tackle what some call "automation addiction." No one is overtly suggesting that pilots are not well trained or sufficiently skilled. The overall safety improvements in commercial aviation over the last several decades are testaments to the contrary. But the question lingers: Can a cockpit crew be so overwhelmed with data that the first rule of navigation – to fly the airplane – gets lost in the confusion? The answer depends on what kind of data is being read in the first place.

In today's sophisticated airliners, automation takes over during most phases of flight except for takeoffs and landings – the two most critical phases. In these instances, pilots typically fly manually. During the cruise portion of flights, most of the thrust, directional and navigational controls are operated by computer. Some experts fear that this may lead to complacency. The systems rely on accurate data and when faulty information goes in, the consequences could be catastrophic. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) reports that 51 "loss-of-control" accidents - in which planes stalled or got into unusual situations from which that pilots were not able to recover - have occurred over the past five years, making it the most common type of airline accident, according to a report from The Associated Press. The report also cites a U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) study, which examined 46 accidents and major incidents, 734 voluntary reports by pilots as well as data from more than 9,000 flights in which a safety official rides in the cockpit to observe pilots, found that pilots sometimes "abdicate too much responsibility to automated systems." A committee sanctioned by the FAA warned that opportunities for pilots to maintain proficiency by flying planes manually are limited and regulators discourage or even prohibit pilots from disengaging the autopilot during the cruise phases of flights. But what happens when a pilot has to react to incorrect data?

Air France 447 airspeed equipment fed inaccurate data to the pilots in the cockpit and this led to a reaction by the crew that ultimately ended in the crash of the A330, according to a preliminary report by French authorities. The pilots may have been overwhelmed by the number of alarms and warnings and the protocols required to react to each level of emergency. It's quite possible that they did the best they could but may have based their actions on faulty information. A final report has not been issued. A crash of a commuter plane near Buffalo, New York in 2009 also poses the same possibility. In that case the crew made inputs contrary to what was required during a stall condition and exacerbated the situation resulting in the crash. The crew was reacting to the aircraft's safety warning system. Can technology and highly skilled pilots co-exist? The short answer is yes, but it's not an either/or situation.

According to former US Airways captain Chesley Sullenberger who successfully ditched an Airbus A320 into New York's Hudson River after striking a flock of geese in 2009, pilots and technology can fail together. He advocates for ways for the two to work in tandem. Flight Safety Foundation President Bill Voss states that changes in cockpit procedures are required, not just changes in training. Experts are confident that agencies such as the FAA and the airlines are moving in the right direction. The bottom line is that through both automation and highly skilled pilots, flying has never been safer. We will likely never see the day of pilot-less commercial passenger flights and automation can only take us so far. This is why as passengers we rely on highly skilled pilots to make every flight a routine one, especially when things don't go as planned.

Source: The Associated Press